Element 3-5
German maker of silicon-carbide epitaxial wafers for power semiconductors, based in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Last refreshed: 16 July 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why did the largest single Chips Act grant go to a silicon-carbide wafer maker, not a logic fab?
Timeline for Element 3-5
Received €353m in state aid for a silicon-carbide epitaxial-wafer plant
European Tech Sovereignty: €659m for four fabs, none at the edgeWhat does Element 3-5 make?
How much EU funding did Element 3-5 get?
Where is Element 3-5's new plant?
Background
Element 3-5 was the largest of four recipients when the European Commission approved €659m in German Chips Act state aid on 14 July, taking €353m for a silicon-carbide epitaxial-wafer plant in North Rhine-Westphalia .
Silicon-carbide epitaxial wafers are a specialised, harder input than standard silicon: they underpin the power electronics used in electric-vehicle drivetrains, fast chargers and renewable-energy inverters, a market Europe has identified as strategically exposed given how concentrated silicon-carbide supply currently is outside the continent. Beyond the scale of this grant, little independently verifiable detail about Element 3-5's ownership, founding date or prior output is yet established.
The award places Element 3-5 among the German Chips Act cohort alongside larger, longer-established names such as Vishay and KLA-Tencor, taking cumulative Chips Act aid to roughly €14.2bn and underlining how much of Europe's chip-sovereignty spend is going to specialised power and compound-semiconductor niches rather than leading-edge logic fabs.
Why does silicon carbide matter for chip sovereignty?
